At stake is $50,000 in Forbes advertising and another $50,000 in investment capital. In this latest round, each of the five finalists had to submit a detailed business plan then fly to New York to deliver a 10 minute presentation and answer unscripted questions.

Readers get to vote on the plans and the reader vote and the judges observations will decide who wins.

Contests don’t usually interest me. But Femrite’s story dovetails with many of the questions we’ve been asking the past few months: How will Minnesota build its economic future and what will that look like? Can Minnesota keep and nurture its home-grown entrepreneurs? Can it capitalize on the “green,” sustainable movement?

Some of the biggest economic thinkers in Minnesota are asking these questions aloud. No matter what happens to Femrite in the Forbes contest, her story may help us understand Minnesota’s economic future.